Tuesday, October 5, 2010

I am a die hard "Rajini" fan and love him both as an actor and a human being, many an earlier blog of mine will prove this.

I watched Endhiran and must say I came out with mixed feelings....

The great positive vibe and feel was the "technical" brilliance that tamil Cinema has advanced to as well as the sheer gloss and richness that the film had in every frame. Kudos to Shankar and his Team.

The brilliance of the Graphics especially the last few minutes with the army of Robots has to be seen to be believed. Matches any Hollywood film.... definitely beats Bollywood by a mile.

They have spent crores and it was seen in every frame , every paise of it.....Hats off to the producers , who have taken tamil Film Production into a different orbit - albeit a dizzying one.

For it is this film that has made the rest of India wake up and notice us here.

The other lovely part of the movie that I truly enjoyed was the "Chitti" part. Rajini has proved what a consummate actor and performer he is in his avatar as the Robot ( corrupted). What elan, what dash, what an actor.....truly deserves the sobriquet "Superstar"....

This is not a Keanu Reeves movie , a Superman, Batman or Spiderman film , nor is it the Robin Williams starrer "Bicentennial man" - which in many ways is the inspiration for this film , if you want to know more about this film's plot click here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicentennial_Man_(film)

Now for me as a "Rajini" fan going to a Rajini film....to enjoy my "Thalaivar"

I always love it when Rajini dons the hero , he is the brave, honest good guy ( maybe a coward in the beginning but is transformed into a "Veeran" ) who is wronged by a Villain - he could be a friend turned bad like Sharat Babu in Annamalai , a truly bad guy like Raghuvaran in Baasha or even Suman in "Sivaji" - but there has to be a Duryodhanan - and Rajini , the Panchapandavargal all rolled into one , must in the climax "Thulp" the man out of his senses......

Superstar can also tame the shrew as he did Vijayashanthi in Mannan or Ramya Krishnan in Padayappa - BUT HE MUST HAVE A UNIQUE MANNERISM OR STYLE - that is what makes him the Super star and he MUST HAVE A PUNCH LINE - as Aishwarya says in this film "unnodadhu Thani vazhi"....In these aspects I was disappointed with Endhiran.

He should have had a one to one with Danny Denzongpa or Chitti ( preferably both) and kicked the @#$% out of them . On the contrary he runs away from a drunk toddy tapper who is teased earlier by Aishwarya.....My hero had NO moment of Glory except right at the end , and that too it is not physical but keeps chitti magnetically immmobile etc.... Great for Keanu but not for my Thalaivar.

Despite being the hero he must have at least one nice comedy scene - like the scooter ride with the priest as "paramasivan" or the snake around the neck in a Ladies hostel.....These are a must. Here too Endhiran disappoints

A scene or two with his parents and siblings highlighting "Family" sentiments , - remember that song ? - "Amma endru azhaikkaadha...?" - maybe even a song on the thaththuvam of life like " 8 x 8 vaazhkkai" - nothing like that here - in fact there is NO solo song for him here.

He must also have a nice comedy sidekick like Janakaraj in Basha etc or Goundamani in Mannan or even Vivek in Sivaji..... the duo in this film disappoint to say the least.....

His entry in the film must be with a bang - and a song - remember "Naan autokkaaran.." or "Vandhenda paalakaaran..." or "Devuda devuda..." - nothing like that here in Endhiran for Boss comes into the film without as much as a whisper......

Songs bring me to the point that I found the re recording absolutely brilliant but the songs left me disappointed....I am a die hard fan of the music of "old times" and for me melody is the key , I still relate to modern music if I can hum the tune as I walk out of the theatre - like the "style' song in Sivaji.....I am simply not able to recall a single tune ( I do not listen to FM , watch songs on TV or listen to the CD.) , the first time I listen to the songs is in the film and it must stick to my head. Needless to say the locations and the picturisation was extraordinary , loved it when Rajini does the Robot style dancing. All in all I thought the music of Rehman , another genius, did nothing to lift the film to greater heights as it did in Sivaji or Padayappa.

I must here say that the Stunt sequences were brilliant , probably the best in any Indian Film thus far. Peter heyn must be complimented and of course Rajini who must have had hours and hours of back breaking work - his professionalism and total submission to the Director never ceases to amaze me.....what a man !!!!!

I thought "Chandramukhi" was itself a mild risk as it lacked the elements of the classic "Rajini" film like a clear cut, well defined villain etc but made up more than amply with the songs, the humour and the basic story, not to forget those few glorious moments when Vettaiyan comes on the screen. The Robot here I thought was an extension of the "lakalakalaka" Vettaiyyan - as usual the superstar excelled in it so much so that the last scene was extremely poignant.

My Take -

As a Tamil film fan - Extraordinary Film -what a technical coup.

As a die hard "Superstar" fan - an ordinary film.

As a fan of the "actor" Rajinikanth - a film to be relished... Chitti , takes the cake.

wat ever u told s nice..but u said ther s no opening songs nd punch dialogues...sir these days each n every actor doing tis oly..better we ve to forget tat moments..wen it comes to padiyappa or other films it needs the commercial hype..so they added..but tis kind of movie the story n technical aspects shd be gud..entering into new trend..

dear Pradeep ,I agree every actor is doing this, so what ????When rajini does it, it is simply superb.....did you not enjoy the chewing gum in sivaji - adhurudhu illa ???that is what I wish to see ....if not let us see a totally non masala genre like raghavendra , which to me was immensely enjoyable or a 6 lirundhu 60 varai....when it is a Rajini entertainer I want to be entertained the rajini way....if this is a new trend then I am not happy as a rajini fan....

Can't agree more, Mohan; what a thorough analysis (as ever)! Appreciate it. I felt it was an over kill; Mid way through it gets really draggy & boring...however it was not all that bad that forces one to leave the theater either...You feel that each of the players excelled in their own way,the audience is left disappointed ...

I agree....we all go to movies with a pre conceived notion that is either re inforced or corrected with the film's pre release publicity.When Kamal makes a comedy as opposed to a mahanadi the publicity tells us to expect a comedy and not one that focusses his histrionic talent in tragedy. Here we were promised a pot boiler RAJINI film, and that is where the disappointment comes in , viewed per se , the film has many a high point - and as you said at least 20 minutes too long ( the mosquito scene and at least one song can safely go , so too a few other bits here and there.)

Mr.Mohan Raman, you are BSc Physics graduate from Loyola. I passed out[1971-]74 with BSc Physics at Loyola.I am on Facebook -could not connect with you there.the reason for linking with you is that you are a Sivaji admirer and a Rajni fan.My colleague, Dr.Ganesh is a meta drama specialist and such a core-deep-Sivaji admirer that he evn tenda to look like Sivaji.Would be happy to connect with you.n ln

Bad Review - Especially on "He should have had a one to one with Danny Denzongpa or Chitti ( preferably both) and kicked the @#$% out of them ." - LOL! Mohan Sir, Dr. Vaseegaran is a Scientist... not a Kungfu Master in the Movie..... I beli...eve the Character is quite formed fine. I hope, you could have seen lot of Telugu movies and attracted from there... Of course, you could have expected a SONG when Vasee Meets Sana in Chitti Palace and cuts his hand to prove as Human... LOL! I believe you can expect these kind of things too :) And why you missed to have "Fight with Kalapavan Mani"... isn't it a Great place for a Fight? LOL!!!

Thanks Mohanji for your review of the film. It is well-thought, well-analysed and well-balanced review thoroughly discussing on the plus and minus points of the film in its entire perspective. A couple of days back, I too mentioned in Facebook about http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicentennial_Man_(film), the source created in 1999 but Enthiran is excellently molded to suit the histrionics of Rajini and with marvelous technical presentations. KUDOS TO YOU FOR THE REAL REVIEW. I SERIOUSLY DOUBT WHETHER WE CAN SEE SUCH A MATURED REVIEW OF THE FILM IN ANY OF THE MEDIA, BE IT TV OR NEWSPAPER, CONSIDERING THE PUBLICITY AND EUPHORIA CREATED PRIOR AND SUBSEQUENT TO ITS RELEASE.

sir... my humble greetings... n 1st of all i hv a request to u.... pls join some magazine or newspaper as a columnist n write reviews regularly... wooow.... jus blown away by ur review... i too,am a huge huge "thalaivar" fan.... n similarly missed tat openin ,an openin song/fight punch dialogs and fist to fist action etc....especially missed the roar of the crowd wen thalivar makes a grand entry... nt anyhow i screamed my heart out as it ws my thalaivar on screen... dis review of urs is d best on endhiran so far... n i thoroughly enjoyed both the versions of chitti.... especially Chitti 2.0 upgraded version tho it ws nt thalaivar's trademark negative characters...bt still it was good to see vintage rajni(tho nt as powerful) as villain... kudo's to thalaivar,shankar n team n u for ur marvellous review..

Thank you all.....dear keyar,I did not claim it to be a review of the film, but my feelings on watching the same...His character in Sivaji was a software expert and NOT a karate master so, did he not bash up the Villain, come on...I have probably seen 3 telugu films in my life...what I was comparing this was with rajini's own films of the past.Yes, a fight or at least half a fight was needed with kalabhavan mani. The running away is not befitting "Superstar"....he is first viewed by millions as rajini , only then the Character....It is called "hero image" in film parlance.The song part you mentioned is also there....when she can have a dream song after he refuses to meet her in the lab, why not one when he brings dinner and cuts himself....I feel there were too many duets and not even a single solo song for him.

Dear Lucky , I am almost full in facebook as there is a limit on the number of friends we can have...I have for this purpose created a second page , I give the link below and you are most welcome to connect with me there.http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mohan-Raman/124832310900108?v=app_2373072738&ref=ts#!/pages/Mohan-Raman/124832310900108?ref=ts

Sir, I feel that Rajini - Kalabhavan Mani scene is like a prologue for the climax of Enthiran - coz this is where the Shankar has shown that the character uses his wits or intelligence to come out of a situation instead of his physical power and that is very evident in the climax. though Superstar is a Superstar and hope no one can deny that, we want to see some change in the role he portrays - may be if he delivers something like AAK Chandiran of thillu mullu or Deepak of Ninaithaale Inikkum immediately in his next it would not be less than a Grand Feast to all of us.

Hi Mohan,A great deal of information shared... I should say that this is indeed a die hard fan's analysis of his matinee idol....Let me share my views:About movie: Rajini has doned a role of a Director's actor... He has justified it in every frame of the movie... he has just implemented what his director has asked him to do... just like how Chitti acts to Vaseegaran instructions... Rajini has done it with great dedication and simplicity... In None of the frames he (i mean the character Dr Vaseegaran) has worn a hat of the super start (in fact i was expecting a fight scene with the drunkard..yes Shankar proved me wrong) ... Then it really made sense with the intro scene too...the opening given in the movie is meant for the scientist and not to Rajinikanth... About Rajinikant:I was spell bound to digest the fact that a superstar... can still be a ordinary actor if the directors wants him to be one (it is very difficult for an person who has attained a status in the minds of people with a certain style of acting skills, to let another person mold him )... May be this is one of the reason that has made him a super star... Conclusion: Rajini has graced the role of the scientist with utmost perfection... thus treating all of his die hard fans (includes me)...with an yet another super performance....The movie is a treat to watch....

Dear Padma,I had mentioned his accepting the director as boss - cannot deny it....a Rajini film is not to be viewed and spoken about as any other film, it is special especially for his fans who go in millions to experience the film, not watch it. My comments were based on that premise and nothing else. I did not analyse/review the film, its script , etc....for I do have a lot to say on that. I am a rajini fan and admirer and my comments are from that point of view.

Without sounding bombastic, reading this was like reading my own review, only this is couched in much better words - http://sowmyagopal.blogspot.com/2010/10/endhiran-just-pass.html.In short, couldn't agree more !

Its very nice to see your different perspective. I even completely agree with what you said. For a lot of people I know, they were quite disappointed with the cinema, as they expect a little more from their super star.

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Me...

I am an actor in Tamil Films and TV & a management Graduate from XLRI. I have acted in about a 100 Films and over 4000 TV episodes. I am also a Corporate Trainer and use movies as a tool to teach .This experiential type of learning with games,movies etc has worked well with people from all areas and levels of Management. As a Philatelist my interests are Stamps on Cinema and I have a huge collection of Stamps on this subject.I have also been instrumental in the Postal Authorities honouring several doyens of the film industry by bringing out Special Day Covers and in a few cases Postage Stamps as well.I regularly give lectures on Film related subjects and have spoken about Chennai in Cinema, Nagesh , Chandrababu, Kishore Kumar, M.R.Radha to name a few. I have written articles on Famous Film personalities in The Hindu, madras Musings, Satyam Cinema magazine etc.

About Me

I can boldly state that I am South India's only ENTERTRAINER. I use Cinema and my experience of nearly 20 Years in it to conduct Training programs and Lectures in English and TAMIL on Communication , Team Work , Leadership , Personal Growth , Planning etc. These are peppered with anecdotes and stories from the Film Industry. I use Hollywood , Bollywood and Kollywood films depending on the audience.

I also collect Postage Stamps on Cinema and my collection has been awarded a few medals at State and National level comptitions.

I give lectures on film related subjects - I have spoken to a wide variety of people from Judges of the High Court to Lovers of Cinema and Chennai City.

I am married to Padma - (since 1979) and we have two children. My son V.P.Raman is a practicing advocate and is married to Sowmyah , they are blessed with a son - my grandson - Rudra. My daughter Vidyullekha is a succesful actor in Tamil and Telugu films.

I was recently awarded "Distinguished Alumni Award" by my alma mater - XLRI , where I did my MBA - 1978 batch of PGDBM. I have also been awarded the Tamil Nadu State Govt Award for best character award.